Reflections of the Heart Challenge
by Regardless1604
Summary: Twenty-five feelings, twenty-five characters, 100-150 words each. Will you accept the challenge?
1. Love

**[EDIT 7/15/12] Okay, due to some complications, I had to move the challenge page to a forum. Please check it out for the list of themes and for future challenges to the Harvest Moon community. It's called Challenges from the Homestead, the same name as the community I've started.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon.**

**Lillia**

Every day, from behind the counter of the small chicken farm, Lillia would look out the window, hoping to see her husband walking down the path to see her again. Every day, she could feel herself getting weaker and weaker, dying a slow, aching death. How she hoped her beloved Rod would come back soon with that mystical healing flower, so that she could walk without pain, so that she could see without forcing her eyelids open.

But it wasn't a selfish desire—she only wanted to be strong for Rick and Popuri, so that they wouldn't have to see their mother die until she was a ripe old age, so that she could attend their weddings, so that she could play with her grandchildren one day… Lillia only wanted to be healed out of love, deep love for her two children.


	2. Hate

**I'm actually rather proud of this chapter.**

**Marlin**

Sweat poured down his face in a steady line, and as Marlin hoed away at the ground, he couldn't help but curse himself. Sure, the doctors back in the city were right—the clean country air was good for his condition. In fact, it almost made him feel like he was free from that curse. Almost. He hated being so… so weak. So utterly _useless_. He tried his best to be strong for his sister Vesta, for _Celia_…

He tried his hand at farm work, and did stay strong for a while; then his sickness kicked back in. Whenever it would rain, the girls wouldn't let him go outside and work. _But they need me; it's not good for women to be working by themselves…_ He would think angrily.

No, Marlin didn't hate his ailments for making Vesta and Celia work harder; he hated and blamed _himself_ for that.


	3. Patience

**I couldn't for the life of me figure out what to do with this one.**

**Sabrina**

Having Regis as a father, she made sure that she stayed very patient with him. Being a quiet and goodhearted person in nature, Sabrina tried her best to listen to her father, though it was rather hard sometimes. Regis did love her so very much, but he did get short with his daughter—especially on a bad day of work.

But Sabrina just pushed it aside, and made sure she always wore a patient and understanding attitude when she was around him. The young woman knew how hard it was when her mother left, and she couldn't help but try to keep her father happy. It grieved her to see him so sad.

So, as she listened to her father rant about a bad deal with another mining company, she just took a breath and waited patiently to calm him down. Perhaps a cup of tea would do the trick…


	4. Happiness

**Harvest King**

He did not feel happiness for the incompetent humans down on earth often. Actually, he didn't feel any pleasure with their existence for such a long time that he took his presence from the mortal world all together. The humans wouldn't miss the Harvest King—no, they destroyed the world. They wouldn't care about whether he stayed or left.

But now, he was summoned by a human; a mere mortal fool, a farmer claiming to have saved the lands. But now, as he looked out at the farmer girl's work that she had accomplished—he felt warmth. She had actually done good for the land—she had actually _cared_. A spark lit in his cold heart for these selfish people… If one could prove that they could love nature, then surely the rest could.

A small—almost unnoticeable—smile appeared on his face. That spark was lighting a lost happiness.


	5. Lust

**I accidentaly ran into Luke and Selena's first rival heart event in AP, and my mom walked into the room. Eh, haha, she did a double-take on the screen, and was like "Why is that girl belly dancing!" I was like "..." It was uncomfortable. Besides, I really don't like Selena. Stupid, vain, stuck-up chick.**

**Selena**

Dancing was her dream, and she didn't plan on letting anything stop her from achieving it. She would put on her exotic clothing, and would then dance her heart out in front of people. Of course, one of the things that attracted those people—specifically _men_—was what she wore.

Selena knew that her clothes were revealing, but really, what else was she supposed to dance in? She was no ballerina, after all. So of course her dance clothes were not exactly, ah, _appropriate_. It was her business to invoke a feeling of lust in her watchers—how else would she make money? How else would she even get anyone to watch her so that she could achieve her dream?

No, Selena didn't care that she made men lust after her. She was more self-centered than anything.


	6. Anger

**Eh, I'm in a serious Avatar mood right now. Any of you into that cartoon too? Well, I thought of something weird. The Harvest Moon character that really reminds of Zuko is... Gray. Crazy, right? I guess it's just because they're just so... angry. It's in their character to be angry all the time, yet so loveable. That's really the only thing in common, but hey, I figured I would just throw that out there.**

**Gray**

Anger was always something that he struggled with. Old Saibara was always nagging him, telling his grandson that his work was never good enough. That always tore Gray down. It killed his self esteem, and stomped on his pride. But Gray refused to be humbled by his grandfather's harsh words. Instead, they made him angry. He had been so angry with Saibara for years, that it started to erode into who he was. It was what characterized Gray—anger. The blacksmith would just take the disapproving words, and spit them out crossly. He wasn't ready to just "take it." No, he would never do that. He wasn't that soft.

But there was one person that could keep that burning fire inside of Gray from exploding. It was his girl, the one that meant the world and more to him.


	7. Jealousy

**This is actually the first time I've worked with the new TToTT characters. But I actually can imagine Cheryl throwing a tantrum over Lillian and Ash being together. She just looks like a brat to me.**

**Cheryl**

Ooo, it made her so mad! Her big brother was always hanging out with that new farmer girl! What about Cheryl? Did Ash not care about his little sister anymore? It made her so jealous, but she would never actually tell him that. She still wanted Ash to be happy, but... she didn't like Lillian very much. Yes, the farmer was always very nice to the young girl, but she was stealing her brother from her! They were on a date right now, and Ash wouldn't know that the little girl was throwing a fit... Cheryl threw herself onto her cushy bed and started crying. She didn't like being jealous, it hurt her heart. But she had to, she couldn't just let her brother leave her all alone. What would she do without him?


	8. Peace

**Hey, people! I'm bringing out a new challenge for y'all today, and I hope you check it out!**

**Gustafa**

The musician went wherever life took him without a complaint. He had no worries, nothing he regretted. If he did, he would let it go easily, without another thought. That was one thing that the other villagers could see in Gustafa: his sense of wellbeing wherever he was or whatever the circumstance be.

Most people didn't have the peaceful soul that he did. Some passed it off as that he was just a hippy, and others thought it came from his music, as if it had some sort of magical properties when he played his instrument. Gustafa knew that those things weren't true.

He merely focused on the good things in life, and tried to keep an open and happy outlook when it came to controversial issues. Being solemn had never really been his thing. So, with his pleasant attitude and open composer, Gustafa had a good sense of peace.


	9. Grief

**Not much in the mood for an author's note right now...**

**Mira**

The cold Winter wind nipped at Mira's nose, but she ignored it. The elements didn't affect her very much anymore. Nothing really did. When the amount of business went up at the accessory shop, she didn't celebrate with Julias. When business went down, she didn't fret over it. She was just cold, empty, and numb to the things around.

Mira didn't realize her husband's death took such a toll on her emotions. She had grieved for so long that she didn't think about much of anything anymore, just her depression, her loneliness…

People worried about the woman, but did little to try helping her. Some people just can't be helped when their morning. That's how Mira was—she couldn't be helped. Her grief was too much for even her.


	10. Joy

**Popuri**

One afternoon, as Popuri was tending to the chickens, she decided that there was a difference between happiness and joy. Happiness was something you felt when you got a nice gift, or when someone did something nice for you. It was an expression—something your face shows when you want people to know you're pleased. But joy was different; it was a feeling that came from deep in your soul, and bubbled up into your words, actions, and attitude.

Popuri felt proud of herself for coming up with these definitions, but when she told Rick about them, he only shrugged, said "Okay," and walked away.

But Popuri wouldn't let her brother's uncaring attitude step on her joy. It was almost always her constant companion.


	11. Greed

**I really wanted to show another side of Jack that I'm pretty sure isn't portrayed very often.**

**Jack**

His farm was amazing; so many barns and coops, so many bountiful crops… It was hard not to boast. And though Jack had a lot of pride in his work, that wasn't necessarily what he struggled with. His major flaw wasn't pride—it was greed. A good deal at the seed shop? He'd be there. New baby animals? He couldn't wait until they were ready to make products. Sure, he did actually care about his crops and animals, but whatever he could do to get more gold, the farmer was all over it.

Some just called it ambition; but few could see through him, and sensed his greed for more money. Now, Jack wasn't proud of that trait, but he couldn't give it up. Getting more and more was more than just greed—it was an addiction.


	12. Kindness

**I'm going to say that this is probably the ONLY thing I have ever written for Vaughn. Sad, right?**

**Vaughn**

He was unbreakable. Chelsea officially decided that she was never going to get through to the silver-haired cowboy. She had been trying for weeks, but nothing ever worked out. He would always turn her away coldly, without a smile, without a drop of warmth in his voice.

Chelsea turned to go back to her farm from the animal shop, but before she could close the door behind her, she heard her name called.

"Chelsea, you dropped this." Vaughn handed her the animal bell that must have fallen out of her rucksack.

She smiled. "Thanks, Vaughn! You're too kind!"

He tipped his hat, but his face was still impassive towards her, his violet eyes still cold.

But Chelsea was happy. Now she knew that somewhere deep inside of him, yes, there _was_ an ounce of kindness, somewhere—she just had to crack it open.


	13. Emptiness

**Hey people! Gosh, I haven't updated this challenge in quite a while... *cough*causeIcouldn'*cough* Oh well! I'll just bring out at least to chapters today to, er... make up for it. Yeah.**

**Grant**

Work. Work. Work.

That's all life had become to Grant—work. No time for Kate, no time for fun, no time for anything but that heavy load he put on his shoulders every morning. Maybe that's why Samantha left him when their daughter was still young, never to look back.

To Grant, life was only a burden, having lost all its meaning and zest to his idol: his job. Sure, being an accountant was a bland, lifeless profession, but he was too distracted to look for another job. Kate seemed to be the only thing that made him determined to keep living, but even _she_ made his life harder with her spiteful words and actions.

Maybe just ending it all would be better than being a lifeless, empty shell of a person. Grant wasn't sure though; he had a job to go to the next day, after all…


	14. Hope

**See, I told you I would put at least another chapter of this up today! :D**

**Jamie**

_Humans are evil, terrible beings that never should have been created. They only destroy everything good and divine, and have no love for their fellow man. They should all just _**die**_._

Jamie scowled at the new farmer girl who seemed to think that she was the answer to getting the Harvest goddess out of her stone casing; it was almost laughable. Of course she thought that she could complete the task—she was only human. All humans believed that they could do whatever they put their minds to.

Wrong.

He knew better than that—to believe that she could be the answer—but something in her face, her look of determination… Something gave him the hope that maybe she could do it. He swallowed that idea down and gave her an icy glance, though no matter how cold his heart was towards humans, it couldn't put out that hopeful spark.

**A/N: Have I ever mentioned that I really like Jamie? Like... not necessarily as a bachelor/bachelorette, but I just really find his character interesting. But that might just be because I agree with the idea that he's the Harvest goddess's son. I dunno.**


	15. Thankfulness

**Yeah... not my best work. But hey, three updates in one day! That's good, I guess.**

**Shea**

Shea didn't need much. He needed a spear to hunt with. He needed a tent for shelter. He needed Wadda to guide him. There really wasn't much more he required to survive, which, of course was a man's main goal in his tribe—to survive.

But now, as the farmer girl presented him with a large fish, he just looked at her blankly. Shea didn't need her help, so why was she giving him this? He was perfectly able to fetch one for himself. But he took it without a word, and watched her leave, with a strange feeling he wasn't sure of welling up inside of him. It was like… like he was happy a stranger was being nice to him, giving him things that he needed to survive.

What was this new feeling?


	16. Hurt

**I really, really, _really_ like Harris and Aja as a couple. Their story in the game is pretty sad, which I love. I kind of feel that the older characters have more depth to them than the newer characters. Is that just me, or do others agree?**

**Harris**

He loved her—and it wasn't just a petty crush; it was a love deep from his heart, even after all those years.

Harris's heartbeat sped up as soon as Aja's letter came in; maybe she would come back for him! Maybe they could get married, have children, and live a happy life! His pale fingers trembled as he opened up the paper, revealing her beautiful handwriting. The envelope even smelled of her perfume—the same she always wore back when she lived in Mineral Town. The officer read the words slowly, taking in everything, but his face quickly fell. His childhood love had fallen for another man in the city, and they were to be married in a few months. She wanted him to come out for the wedding, but he knew that deep down, he would never be able to stand going.

He would never love again.


	17. Lively

**Taylor**

Anissa was always telling her little brother about how much energy he had; most of the time it was in a scolding manner. It was the same with his mother. And father. And Jin. And Irene. Even his younger cousin Van told him he should calm down sometimes. Well, maybe that little snot was just too calm for his own good.

Taylor didn't care about what they said, especially since Chloe had once told him she liked how lively he was. It may have just been in his nature to be a little ball of mischievous energy, but something inside him liked it when his friend praised his behavior, even when everyone else seemed to hate it. Besides, as a free spirit, he didn't need adults to keep him "calm" and make sure he was "a good child"; besides, it wasn't _natural_ to be a perfect angel at his age!

Oh well, at least Chloe still liked him.


End file.
